USC left the Coliseum with a 49-30 win over Louisiana on Saturday night, and Lincoln Riley’s biggest takeaway wasn’t just the 3-0 start to the 2026 season. It was that the Trojans had plenty to clean up even after putting up a comfortable-looking final score.
Riley called it “a little bit of an up and down win,” but pointed to strong stretches from all three phases, especially early and again in the opening part of the third quarter. USC was getting stops, the punt return flipped momentum, and Riley said the Trojans did a good job of holding control after Louisiana briefly swung things back its way.
The part that bothered him most was discipline. Riley didn’t sugarcoat USC’s penalty issues, saying, “The penalties are going to be the most alarming thing for us tonight.
It was a lot, and they were really at horrible times. There's never really good times for penalties, but we had some at really inopportune times, and that's something we have to clean up a lot.
There's no doubt about that.”
Even with the miscues, Riley sounded encouraged by what he saw from USC’s younger players. The Trojans leaned on a wave of freshmen and other young contributors, and Riley made it clear he likes the direction that group is headed.
He said, “We've played a ton of young guys, some early in games, some later. Generally, I feel very positive.
If there's another team having more young guys contribute in the country right now, I'd love to see it. I'm very positive.
There's still a lot of growth that has to happen, whether it's the guys that are playing with the first and second teams, or some of the guys that are playing down the line a little bit. We just have to keep growing.
I feel like our peak, or our trajectory, should be even higher because of how many young guys are playing and learning and playing in their first games. We should have a chance to really really grow throughout the season.”
The run game also gave Riley reason to breathe easier. He said USC was “a little more connected,” which had been a major goal, and liked the way the backs settled in after needing a little time to find their rhythm. Once they did, he said they meshed better with the offensive line and tight ends, ran hard, and started creating extra yards and big plays.
Defensively, Riley said the Trojans feel solid across the front seven and in the secondary, but admitted there are still a few spots where USC needs more depth. He was pleased to get safety Marquis Gallegos back and said safety Peyton “Man Man” Dyer was available for the first time in this game, which should help moving forward. Still, Riley said a couple secondary spots need more bodies, especially with the season continuing to unfold.
One of the night’s brighter offensive notes came from tight end Mark Bowman. Riley said Bowman “made some plays for us,” helped get the offense rolling, and did damage after the catch while also blocking well. He added that Bowman is dangerous in space and praised the way he got involved and found the end zone a couple times.
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For a Trojans team trying to build momentum, the timing mattered as much as the numbers. Maiava also spoke about getting ready for Rutgers and reflected on how far he has come over three seasons at Southern Cal, which adds another layer to a performance that was already important for the scoreboard and the injury conversation alike. [Read more 🡒]